When peach blossoms begin to bloom, it is also the time when the people of Muong Lat border region join in singing and playing the flute. This year, cassava has a good harvest, the revenue from labor export brings hundreds of billions of dong to this locality, helping people to be happy, excited, and ready to welcome a new year with confidence in victory.
Joy on the cassava hill
In the last days of 2024, people in Trung Ly, Tam Chung, Muong Ly, Pu Nhi communes... of Muong Lat border district (Thanh Hoa) are harvesting cassava. From early morning, on the hillsides of Cha Lan village, Muong Ly commune, dozens of young men hoe the land, pull out, put cassava in sacks and carry them to the truck to transport to the gathering point, waiting for the goods. On the cassava fields, each person has a job, the atmosphere is joyful because of a bumper cassava crop. Smiles bloom on the lips of the villagers in the cold weather of the remote border area.
On a steep hill, the cassava farm of more than 1 hectare of Thao A Gin's family, residing in Cha Lan village, Muong Ly commune, is in the harvest season. Carrying a heavy bag of cassava on his shoulder, drenched in sweat, A Gin said: This year's cassava crop, the family will finish harvesting before Tet, with an expected yield of 15 tons. With the current selling price of about 1,800 VND/kg, A Gin's family estimates to earn more than 20 million VND.
A Gin said: “Before, my family grew a little rice and planted xoan trees for wood to sell, but it was not enough to eat. Since the day we were allocated land, the cadres have taught us cassava growing techniques, and I have followed them. For the past three years, thanks to cassava, my whole family of nine has had enough to eat. My children can go to school and learn to read and write, and I have new clothes for Tet. Gin is very happy.”
In Nang 1 village, Muong Ly commune, with 84 households, 65 households participate in growing cassava. In recent years, this crop has brought stable economic value to the people. Ngan Van Tinh's family is known as the household that grows the most cassava in the village. With 10 hectares of land growing short-term industrial crops, when harvesting, Mr. Tinh calculated that he could earn hundreds of millions of VND, marking a "great victory" in this year's crop. "I am the Party Secretary and Head of Nang 1 village. If I want people to listen to me and follow me, cadres and party members must set an example and do it first. Seeing that my family's cassava growing is effective, most households in the village have converted the area previously used to grow other agricultural crops to grow cassava, since then many households have escaped poverty and have food and savings. The clearest proof is that the whole village now has only 4 poor households and 1 near-poor household," said Mr. Tinh.
Mr. Ha Van Tuan - Secretary of the Party Committee of Muong Ly commune said: Muong Ly is the commune that grows the most cassava in Muong Lat district with nearly 1,000 hectares, of which about 400 hectares are planted with high-quality cassava. "With the current cassava price of 1,800 VND/kg, it is estimated that this crop, local people can earn tens of billions of VND. People will have a full Tet, spring will be brilliant, full of hope" - Mr. Tuan said.
Rich town in the mountains and forests
Perhaps few people would think that in the poorest district of Thanh Hoa, there would appear a "rich street" right on the border, close to neighboring Laos. That is Quang Chieu commune. 14 years ago, the poverty rate in this locality was 78%. The whole commune has more than 1,000 households, most of whom live on slash-and-burn farming. And today, Quang Chieu has changed dramatically. About 200 spacious, high-rise houses, worth 700 - 1.5 billion VND/house, have been built on both sides of the road in Pung and Xim villages, looking no different from urban areas. The poverty rate in Quang Chieu has dropped to below 20.
Vi Hong Inh's family in Pung village, Quang Chieu commune has two sons who went to work in Korea. Mr. Inh said: In 2015, his son, Vi Van Hieu (34 years old), after finishing college, continued to study Korean, took a vocational exam, and then flew to the land of Kim Chi. At first, Hieu worked in the field of farming and agricultural production, earning 30 - 50 million VND per month. After that, he switched to working as a construction worker, earning 70 - 80 million VND per month. In 2019, following his brother, Vi Van Hao also went to Korea with the desire to change his life. Currently, Hao has the same income as his brother, from 60 - 70 million VND per month.
Mr. Inh said: Every month, Hieu and Hao send their parents a total of about 60 million VND. From this money, he decided to build a house worth more than 1 billion VND to avoid the rain and wind and to use it for big things for his two children in the future. “The rickety wooden house that used to be home to 3 generations has now been replaced by a 2-storey house, one of the most spacious in the village. Since moving to the new house, I have had sleepless nights. For most of our lives, my wife and I did not dare to think about building a house. Thanks to our children, now the rain does not reach our faces, the sun does not reach our heads. Every time Tet comes, spring comes, brothers and relatives gather and celebrate with the villagers,” Mr. Inh said.
Quang Chieu commune currently has 317 people working abroad, mostly in Taiwan (China), South Korea, Japan, etc. Currently, the locality has more than 50 people participating in Korean language classes and more than 30 people have completed the exam and are waiting for exit procedures. Mr. Vi Van Thuan - Vice Chairman of Quang Chieu Commune People's Committee shared: "By the end of 2024, the total amount of money sent back by children working abroad is more than 60 billion VND. From the contributions of the people, the commune has built many works, concretized 50 km of roads in 13 villages, 8 villages have met new rural standards".
Regarding the labor export program, Mr. Truong Van Binh - Head of the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, Muong Lat District People's Committee said: From January to December 2024, the whole district had 96 more workers working abroad. "Determining this as one of the important solutions to find jobs, the district is responsible for coordinating and promptly removing obstacles and risks in the process of implementing contracts as well as paying attention to knowledge, vocational training and foreign language training for workers. The district has supported 32 workers to work abroad with an amount of 152 million VND; coordinated with the Social Policy Bank Branch to create conditions for workers to borrow capital...
Bright colors
Returning to the story of cassava, Muong Lat chose cassava as a livelihood to help people quickly earn income and ensure their lives. From there, people can rest assured to plant forests and perennial plants with higher economic value. Mr. Tran Van Thang - Head of the Department of Agriculture, Muong Lat District People's Committee said: "In the 2024 cassava crop, the whole district has 3,000 households planting 3,020 hectares, cassava output is estimated at 18-20 tons/ha, expected to earn about 110 billion VND".
Mr. Trinh Van The - Chairman of Muong Lat District People's Committee said: The district has worked with Phuc Thinh Agricultural and Forestry Products and Agricultural Materials Production and Processing Joint Stock Company. This enterprise agreed to initially sign a contract to purchase 1,600/3,020 hectares of cassava from the people. "In April 2024, the district established a Steering Committee and is coordinating with the above enterprise to complete investment procedures and start construction of a cassava starch processing factory right in the area. We have determined that this is a key crop, bringing a breakthrough, helping people gradually change their lives".
Mr. The added that Muong Lat's economy continues to have positive growth, infrastructure is increasingly invested in synchronously, with high connectivity, especially transport infrastructure, electricity, cultural and educational infrastructure. The growth rate of production value in 2024 is estimated at 3.77%, up 2.04% over the same period and 0.37% compared to the annual plan.
Source: https://daidoanket.vn/xuan-am-mien-bien-vien-10299171.html
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